Wayland High School Football

(Jake Westbrook/WKTV)

By Ty Marzean

WKTV Contributor

The Division 4 playoffs began where the regular season left off: South Christian vs. Wayland at East Kentwood’s Falcon Stadium.

The rematch of the regular season finale, which saw both teams combine for nearly 1,000 yards and 89 total points, looked a lot different Friday night as South Christian controlled the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball to cruise to a 34-7 playoff victory.

South Christian struggled out of the gate

The Sailors elected to receive the opening kickoff and proceeded on a 15-play drive that saw junior quarterback Carson Vis struggle to pass the ball. Vis went 1-4 and took a sack before turning the ball over on downs.

Wayland started its first drive at the 25-yard line. On the second play, Wildcat running back Cameron Bogart burst out of the backfield and streaked down the sideline for a 74-yard touchdown run.

South Christian Coach Danny Brown had flashbacks of the week prior.

“That was not how we anticipated it starting,” said Brown, whose team improved to 7-3.”We envisioned coming out getting a defensive stop and scoring.

“We knew that if we could all come together and trust each other and do what we’re supposed to do, we would have a chance.”

Sailors grind it out on offense

Vis finished off a 14-play, 70-yard drive that took over seven minutes off the game clock with a 4-yard dart to Jake Vermaas that tied the game at 7.

Vis threw an interception to Wayland’s Kaharrie Pureifoy on the next drive.

South Christian grabs lead for good

The final drive of the first half was capped off by an 8-yard touchdown run by Vis to give South Christian a 14-7 lead at the half.

“All year, we have been scoring in a hurry; this game, we had to grind it out,” Brown explained.

A week after giving up 453 yards, South Christian stood stout and gave up the lone touchdown on the opening drive.

South Christian’s Cam VanSolkema. (WKTV/Ty Marzean)

“We took it personal”

Senior defensive lineman Cam VanSolkema has been an anchor on the Sailor defensive front since he’s been a freshman.

“I think the energy at practice changed the whole game,” VanSolkema said. “We all trust each other and love each other, and that was the topic we worked on during practice this week.

“We took it personal and we got it done on defense.”

South Christian controlled the second half as Vis went a perfect 6-for-6 with another touchdown pass to Vermaas while adding a second running score.

“He was a little off schedule to start the game,” Brown said. I don’t know if he was just excited. We went up to him and said settle down and get back to basics.”

Vis completed 11-of-16 passes for 188 yards and two scores, including an interception. He also ran for 96 yards and two touchdowns.

South Christian receiver Jake Vermaas earlier this year. (Courtesy, Eric Walstra)

His favorite target, Vermaas, had six catches for 129 yards and two touchdowns.

South Christian advanced to the district finals against Forest Hills Eastern next Friday.

Last meeting, the Sailors beat Forest Hills Eastern 32-29 in Week 4.

“They’re a good team up front they’ve got some really good linemen, and their backs run hard, so we’re going to have a challenge,” Brown explained. “We’re going to need another great week of practice like we had this week.”

The winner of that matchup faces the winner of Whitehall vs. Big Rapids on November 10 in the regional finals.

The Sailors hope to continue their winning playoff ways from last year, where they finished a perfect 14-0 season with a D-4 state title with a 28-0 win over Goodrich. It was South Christian’s fourth state championship in football.

South Christian prepares to take the field. (Courtesy, Eric Walstra)

By Cris Greer

WKTV Managing Editor
greer@wktv.org

In their regular season, high-scoring finale, South Christian fell to Wayland 49-40 in a game where the teams combined for nearly 1,000 yards of total offense. The Sailors had 532 yards, while Wayland posted 453.

One week later, the teams will have to square off again, this time with everything on the line. The Sailors and Wildcats meet in the Division 4 playoff opener at 7 p.m. Friday at East Kentwood’s stadium.

“I would expect them to show up similar to last week,” South Christian Coach Danny Brown said. “It is win or go home time so we expect to get everyone’s best game.”

“We need to clean up some things and get our defensive unit to play 11 strong. We show moments of it, but we haven’t been consistent enough. We seem to lose trust in each other so that is the biggest thing to clean up. Once we lose trust big plays have happened against us.”

Last week against Wayland, South Christian relied on the passing arm of Carson Vis. The junior standout connected on 24-of-44 passes for 373 yards and three touchdowns. Vis also provided a running threat with 117 yards and a pair of scores on eight carries.

“He is a great athlete and has really settled in at playing QB,” said Brown, whose team is 6-3 overall heading into the playoffs. “He has a great understanding of what we are tying to do and has done a great job of executing as the play develops. He can hurt teams with his legs and his arm which makes it tough for teams to game plan for.”

South Christian hopes to lean on quarterback Carson Vis. (Courtesy, Eric Walstra)

While South was passing the ball last week, Wayland countered with an effective running game that gobbled up huge chunks of yardage. Bryce Calkins led the ground game for Wayland with 121 yards on 21 carries and a pair of touchdowns. Wayland quarterback Brady Cassini also was effective running the ball as he rushed for 94 yards on 16 carries. And Kaharrie Pureifoy gave Wayland a three-pronged running attack with 70 yards on seven carries and a touchdown.

Jake Vermaas “best wide receiver in the state,” Brown says

Another big weapon for the Sailors is receiver Jake Vermaas, who had 16 catches for nearly 300 yards and three touchdowns against Wayland.

“Jake is a great athlete and an even better competitor,” Brown said. “He has been the leader of this team and we seem to go as he goes. His game last week was a school record in catches and yards. He is one of the best wide receivers in the state in my opinion.”

South Christian receiver Jake Vermaas is the “leader of the team.” (Courtesy, Eric Walstra)

The Sailors hope to continue their winning playoff ways from last year, where they finished a perfect 14-0 season with a D-4 state title 28-0 win over Goodrich. It was South Christian’s fourth state championship in football.